Pending the litigation, according to multiple reports, from five Big 12 schools -- Baylor, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State and Missouri -- litigation that would disappear if Oklahoma decides to stay in the Big 12 -- the Aggies are closer to saying goodbye to the Big 12 and to domineering big brother University of Texas, and saying hello to the Southeastern Conference.

SEC presidents voted 12-0 on Tuesday night to accept Texas A&M into the league starting next football season, contingent that the Aggies get the blessing from five Big 12 schools that may get left out in the cold in conference re-alignment.

A&M has to pay a $12 million to $15 million exit fee to the Big 12. If there's any school that has enough rich alums to handle any litigation problems, it's the Aggies with their oil and cattle "bidness" riches to buy their way out of trouble.

Beyond adding 25 million TV sets in the Houston and Dallas markets and opening the door to one of most fertile high school recruiting grounds in the nation, the SEC will be getting a school that should be a powerhouse immediately athletically and academically.

Besides a football team currently ranked No. 7 in the AP poll, the Aggies are the defending national champs in women's basketball (coached by former Arkansas coach Gary Blair). Men's basketball has advanced to six straight NCAA tourneys.

The baseball team played in this past season's College World Series after sweeping the Big 12 regular-season and tournament championships. The Aggies have qualified for Super Regionals three of the last five years and the school is about to complete a $24 million expansion and renovation of its baseball stadium.

A&M's men's and women's outdoor track teams have each won the last three consecutive national championships. Both teams are coached by Pat Henry, who coached at LSU for 17 years, and winning a collective 27 men's and women's outdoor and indoor national titles.

A&M will enter the SEC as the third highest-ranked league school behind Vanderbilt (No. 52) and Florida (No. 72) on the 2011 Academic Ranking of World Universities. The Aggies are No. 100 in the world, No. 53 nationally.

Once A&M is in finally in the league, the SEC will proceed with caution. It is willing to play with 13 schools, a seven-team Western Division and a six-team East in the short term, meaning probably one season at the most.

But the league has never felt the urge to keep up with other conferences. If the Pac-12 jumps to 16, don't expect the SEC to follow, for several reasons.

The most logical one is this: The league's current TV contracts calls for every one of its football games by all league members to be televised. If you add four members, that's 48 more TV games.

The SEC's current broadcast partners, even with all the ESPN stations, don't have enough broadcast platforms.

That's why the SEC won't go more than 14 teams. The conference is eagerly awaiting lucky No. 13 and the Aggies desperately want the deal done. A&M knows it will finally get the respect in the SEC as an athletic program and as an academic institution that it never got from the University of Texas or the Big 12.

It's like Tennessee coach Derek Dooley said of the SEC, "We're like a family, which is why the league has been so well-preserved over the years."

LSU's offensive line: Led by former Arlington star Alex Hurst, Tigers' O-line came close to producing two 100-yard rushers in 13-point win over Oregon.

Stephen Garcia: Gets back his South Carolina starting QB job after running for two TDs and passing for another in comeback win over East Carolina.

FIZZLE

Ole Miss late-game coaching decisions: This just in - Ole Miss punter Tyler Campbell, who led the nation in punting last season, is leading again after averaging 56.8 yards on four punts in 14-13 loss to BYU. If he would have had the chance to punt two more times, Ole Miss might be 1-0.

Georgia's defense: What's uglier, Georgia's opening game uniforms in the 35-21 loss to Boise State, or the Bulldogs' defense?